The 13th Floor
by Czechm8
Summary: Joe Hardy still deals with the grief of the car bombing that took his girlfriend's life. Joe is surprised when a coded message from someone claiming to be Iola appears. Apparently, Iola saw something before she died that left a clue as to the head of The Assassins. Originally crediting it as a hoax, Joe reconsiders after strange events start happening. Who is the member? OC's added
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

Joe's P.O.V.

'Got to move' I thought, picking myself up and sprinting back to the elevator. I had found a bomb (inside the safe to room 1351 B) and it was rapidly counting down towards 0. I just prayed I could reach the bomb shelter in time, i.e. the elevator. By some great fortune, I had recently learned that the door to the elevator was protected from gamma radiation, the primary radiation a bomb gave off when it exploded.

Unfortunately, that information served no purpose as the bomb went off faster than I had anticipated. The ensuing blast threw me out the window of the 13th floor towards the hard concrete.

'This is it.' I thought, bracing myself for the quick end. I closed my eyes for a second, then thought better and decided to face death in the eye, like my ex-girlfriend, Iola. Just as I had thought that a glittering light appeared just to my right.

Previously

"Phil! Raisa! Traffic's going to be worse than we anticipated, so let's hurry it up," Chet, a best friend, and former brother of my ex-girlfriend, Iola Morton, hollered from inside the white limo the 10 of us were currently riding in. The 10 of us, soon to be 12, were traveling to JFK for a 4:30 p.m. flight to Austin Texas. Once in Austin, we were picking up 2 cars that our father, Fenton Hardy, had reserved for our large group. Frank's 21st birthday was tomorrow and we would be celebrating in Pflugerville, Texas, about 30 miles away from Austin International Airport, at a new hotel, The Little Bighorn. Not only was The Little Bighorn the site of Custer's Last Stand, but this hotel was also the site of some strange occurrences, of which Fenton had earlier relayed details to us.

Phil Cohen, one of our high school friends with a high IQ and a knack for computer programming, came out first with 2 suitcases and his laptop case. His girlfriend, Raisa Paravatha, an Indian exchange student who worked at an IT company in Manhattan, came out second carrying a single suitcase and a purse.

After the two had stuffed their luggage in the trunk, they climbed in together between Tony Hooper and his identical twin brother, Eduardo.

"Last stop, John Fitzgerald Kennedy Airport," our female driver announced from beyond a dark Plexiglas window that separated the passengers from the driver.

"I've never heard it called anything other than JFK," I heard Karen Hunt whisper to her boyfriend, Biff Hooper. Biff gave a nod.

As the limo was completing its U-turn for getting out of Phil's neighborhood Chet asked, "So can you guys remind me what this mystery at The Little Bighorn is?"

"Well," Frank, my older brother, stated slowly, "There are reports of thumping and thudding coming from above the 12th floor, the last documented floor of the hotel."

"There is evidence of a 13th floor, but it was never found. People just concluded the level got abandoned." I continued.

"Also jewelry and other valuables have been stolen from locked safes during the middle of the night. And lastly, there are claims that the front desk lady, a person by the name of Alice X., is actually a ghost. There is some pretty convincing documented evidence for support, but that is probably not related to the first two claims." Frank finished.

"I'd rather spend my vacation with the Hardy Boys than with the Ghost Busters," Tony's twin brother, Eduardo, voiced causing a nice laugh.

"Same here," my girlfriend, Vanessa Bender, agreed, leaning over to kiss me on the cheek.

Chet thanked us for the review and remained quiet as we drove in relative silence to the airport. Along the way, Vanessa and I spent some time chatting about our itinerary. She wanted to visit Sea World in San Antonio, just like myself, where she hoped to reconnect with a cousin of hers who lived in the area. I myself wanted to have fun and look into the strange occurrences at the hotel.

A while later our limo stopped in front of the United Arrivals. After getting our suitcase's out from the trunk, Frank tipped the limo driver and led us through check-in and security. We breezed through both and the 12 of us all met in front of a Starbucks.

"Alright," Frank exclaimed, checking the time, "We have 45 minutes left until take off. Does anyone want anything before we go? If so, let me know and I can give you your ticket now.

Surprisingly, Frank's girlfriend, Callie Shaw, and Tony's girlfriend, Maria Stefanos, decided to grab a bite. After the two had taken their tickets, the couple got in line.

In the meantime, I took a seat in the waiting area with my girlfriend, Vanessa. For some reason I found myself thinking about Iola. How far would Iola and I be in our relationship if she were alive? Would she even be alive? Would I have gotten to know Vanessa? Would Iola and Vanessa have known each other? Would I have chosen a girlfriend yet?

Finally, my musing was interrupted by Vanessa tapping me on the shoulder. She held both of our tickets in her hand. "It's time to board."

I mumbled a thanks, pocketed the ticket, and pulled myself up. Fifteen to twenty minutes later, we were seated in Row 26, Vanessa in the middle and I in the aisle.

"So, it looked like you were thinking heavily about Iola," Vanessa observed after a short silence.

"How the hell did you know!" I exclaimed in surprise.

"You're the detective," Vanessa teased, "Didn't you learn our body movements can be indicators?" After a second short silence, she added, "You have this look. That's all I'm going to say.

The two of us made idle chitchat until a female voice with a slight Bostonian accent announced from above me, "Excuse me, but I have the window seat."

I nodded and scooted back one row, letting the female pass. After maneuvering around Vanessa, she claimed her seat. I then reclaimed mine.

Wasting no time, Vanessa went ahead and introduced the two of us to the Eastern. After she had introduced herself as Veronica, we all shook each other's hand.

"What brings you to Texas?" Vanessa asked afterward.

"It's complicated," Veronica began, "My friend, Elizabeth, coordinated with my mutual friend, Katherine, for this get together. My friend, Alice, and myself were allowed to tag along. My friends and I are going to free dive Jacob's Well, one of the items on my bucket list.

'Jacob's Well? I've never heard of that place' I mused. Vanessa sensed my quietness and said something along the lines of congratulations.

After thanking Vanessa, Veronica turned the question back on us.

"Well," I began, pausing to study Veronica. She was a tall college-aged female, perhaps 5'10' with Eastern Asian roots. She had light green eyes, long black hair, and a slender athletic body. "My brother's having a birthday party in Texas with me and several of our friends, all of which are on this flight. We're going to relax and look into the strange occurrences happening at The Little Bighorn."

"My friend, Elizabeth, got us a reservation there." Veronica stated out loud, "She didn't mention anything about strange occurrences. Anything we should know about?"

"Really," I responded, surprised by the coincidence that someone else would be visiting The Little Bighorn, "Well there are reports of jewelry and other valuables being stolen from locked safes during the middle of the night. And there have been loud thumps and thuds heard from above the 12th floor, which is advertised to be the last level of the hotel."

Veronica snorted, "Our reservation is on the 12th floor."

"And finally of interest is a claim that the person who works at the front desk, an Alice X., is actually a ghost." I continued, thinking Veronica could be eyes and ears for the 12th floor if she wanted.

Upon hearing the front desk ladies name, Veronica gasped and her face turned pale. I could see from her eyes that she had some sort of connection with this Alice X. and that it was one filled with tragedy. I was correct as Veronica soon revealed she had an identical twin sister named Alice, but that she drowned several years ago. Even though her last name ended in an X, Veronica concluded that it was probably someone different working front desk, to which I agreed.

After a short silence, Veronica announced she was going to try and get some sleep on the off chance that the thuds and thumps would keep her up tonight. She closed her eyes, leaned back, rested her hands on her stomach, and slowed her breathing. She was asleep by the time the plane took off.

Maybe 3 hours later, she woke up.

"You slept well," I observed, "I hope you can sleep well tonight. By the way, I've never heard of Jacob's Well. What and where is it?"

"It's a perineal spring near Wimberley," Veronica detailed. "It's known for its underwater cave labyrinths. Several have drowned there already, but as long as the 4, of us, me and 3 of my girlfriends, keep an eye on each other, we should be fine. We've got plenty of free diving experience among us."

After the two of us wished her good luck, Vanessa then asked Veronica how long she could hold her breath. Veronica deflected the question, but answered the next question; tell us about your sister.

Veronica revealed that both she and Alice were raised in Boston to a construction worker and a dentist. Growing up Alice joined a competitive swim team and spent a lot of time in the water. Pretty soon she was also a competitive breath holder. There was either a really good breath holder already on the swim team, or Alice was just competing with herself, but she broke barriers when she experienced her first splenic contraction at age 11. At age 13, she taught Veronica how to swim after Veronica had been tossed in the deep end and flailed about for about 15 seconds. When she was 15, Veronica and Alice enrolled in a free diving course where Alice formed a relationship with the instructor and committed herself to free diving. She took up yoga, meditation, and anaerobic exercise and improved her time even more. However, when she was 19, she drowned at Loch Ness.

After Veronica had told us Alice had drowned, she slipped into several minutes silence before promising we would talk later. We nodded and watched the flight land. After wishing her goodbye, we made our way to baggage claim and joined our group again.

"By some great coincidence, the person we sat next to is staying at The Little BigHorn," I exclaimed to the group, "She and her friends got reservations at the 12th floor. I don't know if she would be willing to be our eyes and ears, but it's a good break."

"Indeed." Phil commented, "Why didn't you ask her?"

"We should have brought it up, but we didn't." Vanessa admitted, "We'll ask when we see her next. By the way, Tony, do you have any interest in hanging out with some female free divers? Do you want more tips for your spearfishing?"

"I would," Tony agreed, "I don't know any females who can compete with me, so it will be a good change and maybe I'll get some tips so I can reach that 3:30 mark."

I ignored the ongoing conversation and kept an eye out for my suitcase. Maybe 10 minutes later, after all the suitcases had been collected, I was still without my suitcase. I muttered a curse and told my group I was off to see a United representative.

After explaining my plight to the man, Isaac, and giving him any necessary information he would need, I headed back to my group.

"Minor setback," I cried, letting the group know I was back, "They will send it to the hotel if they find it. Let's leave before anything else horrible happens."

Frank smirked and urged his group to car pickup. Since Fenton had already made the reservation, we quickly made our way to the garage. After storing our suitcases among the 2 cars, I climbed into one with Frank, Callie, Vanessa, and the Prito twins.

Traffic was terrible coming out, so our 30-minute drive turned into a nearly 50-minute drive. When we arrived, Eduardo went in to grab the luggage rack while I helped unpack the car.

After helping unpack, Frank suddenly cried, "Think fast Joe." He tossed the keys to me. For some rare reason, my all-around athletic-self dropped the keys. I picked them up, pocketed them, and when I stood up I found myself staring across the street at Iola Morton.

Up until this point, it had been 5 years since Iola died, and I had never seen her or felt her presence. Why was she coming to me now? Was it even her? Of course, it was. Why was I seeing her now?

My musing was interrupted when Frank patted my shoulder exclaiming, "I can't believe you dropped that."

"You and me both," I admitted my eyes momentarily shifting down. When I looked for Iola again, she had disappeared.

'What?' I thought, 'How could she disappear? Was I hallucinating?'

Shaking the image from my mind, I helped everyone load their suitcases on the luggage rack which Eduardo had just brought out. Then we headed in.

The person working at the front desk when we went in wasn't Alice X, the person we would investigate. Instead, her name was Annie C. Walking up to the front desk I whispered to Annie that my suitcase was on its way to The Little Big Horn and to keep it behind the desk when it came.

"I'll do that." Annie promised, "Are you here to sign in?"

Frank excused himself multiple times as he made his way to Annie and took over. While Frank was checking in on our reservation, I searched the lobby, searching for Veronica. I didn't see her, but I saw Iola again. Wait, Iola?

I rubbed my eyes and looked again. Iola was still there. So I was probably not hallucinating.

"You alright man," Chet asked startling me.

"I'm fine. I think," I began, looking back at where I had last seen Iola. Again, she was nowhere to be seen. I mentally sighed, scratched my head in confusion, and waited for Frank to return.

Seconds later, Frank returned, announcing Fenton had reserved our group 3 different rooms on all different floors. It would be up to us to work out who would be staying on each floor.

"Do we want to try the human card shuffler to randomize who gets each floor," Phil suggested, "What floors do you have?"

"639, 503, and 829," Frank replied from memory, "Any specific room requests?"

"Not I." I admitted, "I just want a male willing to lend me some clothes for a day or two."

"You can room with me," Frank offered, "Which 2 of you want to join us?"

Phil and Raisa looked at each other and Raisa announced she and Phil would room with us. After pulling out 4 keys belonging to the same room, we all made our way to the elevator.

"Frank and I will be rooming in 503. Try and remember that," I announced, "Mind if I carry anything, Phil?"

Phil nodded and handed me one of his two suitcases. I took it, wished the others good luck, and joined Frank, Phil, and Raisa in the elevator.

Minutes later, the four of us stood outside our room. Phil took the suitcase that I had and opened the door. After freezing up over the smell of an exploding bomb by the doorway, I entered the room and froze again.

There, in the middle of my room, was what appeared to be my suitcase.

"That's not your suitcase, is it?" Phil asked, eyeing the suitcase that lay in the middle of the room.

"I'll check," I cried, making my way to the suitcase. As I got closer, I noticed a sticky note on the item of interest. Picking the sticky note up, I couldn't help but notice the scent of Iola's perfume.

"To Joe." I read, "Sorry about taking your suitcase, but I couldn't think of another way to near guarantee that you and Frank would room together. Maybe as our relationship continues, you will understand why we never met until now. Maybe you will never. I also arranged your meeting with Veronica. This will be a very important relationship in the future. I recommend you invest in it immediately. Her dead sister, Alice, with whom I am communicating with, is in room 1249.

'Now, in your suitcase, I have put two gifts to help you along with your mystery. The first is a dream catcher. As you progress in this mystery, you will see me more and more. I have something very important to tell you when we meet in your dreams. It involves the extent of The Assassains reach. Trust no one. The second is a notebook. It will be of assistance. Signed Iola. P.S. If you want to talk, find my red-headed messenger."

"Is that some sort of joke?" Frank exclaimed, "Iola died."

"I know," I mumbled, trying to reason the recent events with the fact that I knew Iola was already dead. Either I was hallucinating big time, or I didn't know what happened after death and the recent memories of Iola are evidence that there is something strange about death. Before I thought about it too hard, I needed to contact the front desk and let them know that my suitcase had already arrived.

"Can you get the front desk's phone number for me?" I asked, "I'd like to confirm whether or not Annie could have sent my suitcase up already. Then, we'll look in the suitcase."

Frank nodded and excused himself while he looked for the number. After a short look, he dialed the number, handed me the phone, and excused himself to the room on the right.

After connecting to the front desk and confirming I was talking to Annie, I explained to them that my missing suitcase had been located and asked if she had brought it up. I wasn't surprised when Annie denied any involvement in my reappearing suitcase.

"So someone broke into your room?" Annie questioned, trying to understand, "Do you need me to change your room number?"

"I don't see how anyone could have known I would be in this room." I began. That was true because the only person I could come up with was Iola and she was dead, "I'll set up some shifts and let you know if anything else strange happens. But for now, I won't need a new room."

"Alright," Annie replied, "Let me know if you need to switch. Now, is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Maybe," I admitted, "What time does Alice X work tonight?"

"Is this about the rumors that she's a ghost?" Annie asked.

In surprise, I said yes. Annie sighed, having probably heard that several times before, and continued, "She works every night from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. There anything else I can help you with?"

I told her there was nothing else, thanked her for her help, and hung up. Tonight, one of us would watch the front desk lady. But first, I was off to 1249.

So that is the end of the first chapter. I hope it was better than my previous writings. I've been trying to minimize dialogue and hopefully, I was somewhat successful.

I've already written the next chapter and half of chapter 3. Until next time.

Re3#


	2. Chapter 2

Welcome back FanFiction. Haven't picked up a lot of views, only about 3 per day, but I am pleased to see 2 followers. Here's chapter 2.

* * *

Chapter 2

Joe's P.O.V.

Together, Frank and I unpacked my suitcase looking for the two gifts. We were surprised when we found them both. Just like this alleged Iola described, there were two gifts. One was the notebook. Looking through it, we discovered the notebook had only 3 words; thud equals dot. We both reasoned that the thuds and thumps were part of an elaborate message in Morse Code, thus tying it to the missing valuables. We just had to figure out the message first.

The second gift was the dream catcher. It was circular in the middle with some sort of webbing and had 12 clock-like extensions in the shape of gems. Neither one of us were sure how this object would play into our mystery yet. The issue of seeing Iola more and more in my dreams confused me. Dream catchers were used to give people good dreams and expel the bad ones. Dream progression was totally foreign to me.

"Annie tells me this Alice X. works at the front desk starting 10 pm tonight," I began, "Maybe one of these nights some people can take 2 hours shifts watching the front desk to see if they can find anything unusual about Alice X.

"Sounds like a good idea," Frank agreed, "If you plan on having Veronica be the eyes and ears for the 12th floor, now might not be a bad time to head up. I've got quarter after 9. Hopefully, they're still up."

I thanked Frank, told him I planned to head up there, and told him I'd be in 1249 if he needed me.

After I made my way to the elevator, I was stunned to see a button for the 13th floor. Knowing that the 12th floor was the last documented level on the hotel, I wondered what would happen if I pressed the button for that 13th floor. Something strange, probably.

After bringing out my phone and setting up a video, I pressed the button for the 13th floor. Going up, nothing unusual happened until I reached that 12th floor. The elevator reached the 12th floor and was on its way to the 13th floor when the elevator suddenly stopped.

Thud! Thud! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! The elevator then paused for several seconds before continuing. Thud! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thud! Thump! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thump! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thump! Thump!

The elevator then settled back down to the 12th floor and opened its door.

"What the f*** was that," I exclaimed, the F word escaping my mouth as my mind went completely blank. "Even if we did translate the thuds into dots, I think we're still stuck. Too many combinations."

Exiting the elevator, I sent the video to Phil, Raisa, and Frank in a group text, asking them if they could start transcribing the thuds into dots.

Slipping my phone into my pocket, I followed the signs down to Room 1249.

Before I could knock on the door, it flew open. The person on the other end had dark green eyes, cropped red hair, a fair build, a mysterious aura to her, and visible hearing aids in both of her ears.

"May I come in?" I asked after getting over my surprise. The redhead stared me down before nodding and gesturing me inside.

Cautiously, I stepped inside and observed the room. Apart from the chandelier that hung in the middle of the hallway, our two rooms were the same. My gaze kept on working its way back to the chandelier and I barely heard Veronica say, "Careful or it will hypnotize you."

"It already has," I muttered, turning to face Veronica, "I don't know if you'd be interested, but we need some eyes and ears for the 12th floor. All you'd have to do is listen for the thuds and thumps and see if there's a pattern or time the thuds and thumps occur. Can you do that?" Veronica nodded.

I also told Veronica her alleged sister worked tonight and asked her if she wanted to watch her tomorrow night. She agreed. I was just about to leave when I remembered Iola wanted me to start a relationship with Veronica. I boldly asked, "Have you had dinner yet? Want to go out somewhere and have a bite?"

"We haven't. I'll have to talk it over with my friends first, but I'd be interested," Veronica answered, "I'll meet you in the lobby by 9:45 to let you know my decision."

We each said goodbye to each other and I headed back to the elevator.

'Hah. There's an up arrow for this 12th floor' I thought, eyeing the up arrow near the elevator, 'That's more support for a 13th floor. Yet we're no closer to finding that 13th floor.'

Pressing the down arrow, I stepped into the elevator and rode back down to the 5th floor. When I entered room 503 my roommates Phil, Raisa, Frank, and Chet were around the table. On the table was Phil's computer and the post-it note from the alleged Iola.

"Chet!" I exclaimed in surprise, "What brings you over?"

Chet gave me a side-five before answering, "The handwriting. Frank sent me over to confirm whether or not the writing on the note may have come from Iola. And I admit it certainly looks like Iola's writing. Have you considered something supernatural is happening?"

"Not right now," I admitted, "But something is going on with the 13th floor."

I then explained how there was an up button on the 12th-floor elevator and a 13th-floor button in the elevator. I then directed towards Phil, "Have you transcribed the thuds into dots yet?"

Phil nodded and showed me the transcribed version. **"Dot! Dot! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! There was a large space, then it continued. Dot! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dash! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dot! Dash! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dash! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dot! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dash!"** He explained that he and Raisa were currently writing the program that would review the large number of permutations and sort them by relevance to actual words and or phrases.

I wished the two luck and asked Chet who he was rooming with. He revealed Vanessa, Eduardo, and Callie were staying with him in room 829. After storing that information on my phone, I asked about food.

"Phil and I were going out eat," Raisa admitted, "If you want to come along, you're more than welcome. We've already invited Chet, Vanessa, and the Prito Twins."

"I think I will." I agreed, "By the way, I invited Veronica along. She may want to bring some of her friends. Can you accompany a few more?"

"Certainly. The more the merrier," Phil cried. I then told Phil the details and the three of us agreed to meet everyone downstairs by 9:45.

Around an hour later, after picking up Veronica and her friend, Alice, a slender athletic blonde who admired Veronica free diving ability, we drove to Olive Garden where the 9 of us gathered around two five seated tables that had been pushed together.

"How did you meet your friend, Veronica, Alice?" Chet asked.

"Well my friend, Katherine was already friends with Veronica's friend, Elizabeth," Alice began, "We had never met, but there was an interest in setting up a meeting. I was interested in finding someone who could actually beat me in a breath hold contest and I thought Veronica would give me a challenge. Her sister, Alice, was a very good free diver who could hold her breath for over 7 minutes."

"Holy!" I exclaimed in surprise, "Who would have thought that a 19-year-old could hold her breath for over 7 minutes?"

"Forget that, although that is very impressive," Tony exclaimed, "There any tips you can teach me, Veronica? I want to try and reach 3 and a half minutes."

Veronica nodded and told Tony that he could seek her out next time they met. She then ordered water just as the waiter, a tall muscular African-American standing maybe 6'10" with a shaved head and green eyes walked up.

The man, whose name tag read Abu, didn't miss a beat. He wrote down the drink request and then handed everyone menus. When everyone had ordered, I too had ordered water, the giant departed.

"Anyways, arrangements were made and the 4 of us, Veronica, Katherine, Elizabeth, and I met at the Gulf of Mexico a few years ago." Alice continued, "It was confirmed that Veronica could hold her breath longer than me and, despite the effort I've put in, I've never been able to beat her."

That was apparently all Alice had to say as she went through the Olive Garden menu. I myself browsed through the menu, ordering a loaded baked potato with a side of coleslaw the next time Abu showed up.

After Abu had left, we decided to learn more about each other by playing an icebreaker of sorts where someone asked a question and everyone answered it.

"Have you ever thought about getting a tattoo?" I asked. "If so, where."

Everyone answered the question including Veronica, who admitted, and showed us she already had a dragon tattoo on her right arm. Before her sister hid died, she had got a similar dragon tattoo on her left arm. She shocked everyone, except her friend, Alice, when she revealed that she was 15 when she got a tattoo. Apparently in Boston, a minor could get a tattoo with parental consent.

"My turn," Vanessa cried, "What's the craziest thing you've ever done? Mine was when I was 16. As a lifeguard I was training myself to hold my breath longer, and since I lived on a farm, I practiced holding myself breath in a horse trough."

Vanessa, myself, and a couple others let out a laugh. After having other people relay there craziest moments, Alice stated, "I tried to teleport."

"What?" Phil cried in confusion.

"I tried to teleport." Alice repeated, "In my defense, I saw a magician seemingly teleport from box A to Box B. I have no idea how he did it. So I tried it. However, when my friend, Elizabeth, actually teleported, it left me more confused."

My eyebrows raised in surprise. Teleportation was something you heard about in science fiction, not real life. Raisa and Phil were equally confused.

"That's not possible." Raisa simply stated.

Alice shrugged and explained that she wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen it. She also added that she was getting tips from Elizabeth on how to teleport, although I didn't know how serious she was about that. Alice insisted we investigate it ourselves before making drawing a conclusion.

"How about you, Veronica," I asked, trying to get my mind of the improbability of teleportation.

"At the time it was crazy. Now, it's a possibility thanks to the hard work I've put in. So about a week after my sister drowned, I wanted to join her, "Veronica recalled, "I tried to voluntarily drown myself. You know, take a breath and not surface. Needless to say, I was unsuccessful. So I tied myself to the underwater rungs in the deep end of our home pool. I succeeded but was brought back to my body. It wasn't my time."

"When is your time," I asked, immediately regretting it. Fortunately, Veronica assured me it was fine. She again deflected, this time telling me that was for her to know.

Those who remained also answered the question and we moved on with our icebreaker game. We spent more time playing than eating, so we got back to our hotel at almost 12:30. Looking around, I noticed the person at the front desk was missing. A sign that read **Be Back Soon** was displayed on the desk.

'That's a shame. I kind of wanted to see Alice X, just to ask Veronica if she could confirm that the person working front desk looked like her sister. No matter. We will have time tomorrow night to watch her in shifts.' I thought as I made my way past the main desk to the elevator where the others were.

I said my goodbyes to those not in 503 before heading back into my room with Phil and Raisa. I got ready for bed and slipped in beside a sleeping Frank. I stayed awake for a while, thoughts of Iola keeping me awake. Finally, I fell asleep.

When I woke up, I was surprised to find myself back at the parking lot where Iola had died.

"What?" I whispered in confusion, "I…" Feeling the urge to look up, I did and caught the image of Iola heading into the car that she had perished in. Only then did I realize I was having one hell of a vivid dream.

"I see the way you look at me/I see the way you look at her," I heard Iola sing. She then continued humming that unknown melody as she got closer to her death.

"Stop!" I cried in futility. This was a dream. She had no chance of hearing me, but I didn't want to see her die in a fiery explosion again.

To my surprise, she appeared to acknowledge me. She turned towards me and said, "Find my red-headed messenger."

That phrase jolted me out of my dream and I woke up with a start.

"That was weird," I muttered. Throwing myself up, I stumbled out of bed, noticing Frank was absent and headed into the kitchen. Aside from a sticky note on the table, it appeared that no one else was up.

Making my way to the table I grabbed the sticky note and read it. Apparently Callie and Frank had gone out for breakfast for his 21st birthday. Deciding food wouldn't be a bad idea, I grabbed a phone and dialed room service.

After I had ordered breakfast I scribbled a note to Phil and Raisa, letting them know I had ordered room service and to pick it up when it arrived if I was not back yet, grabbed my key card, and walked down five flights of stairs to the front desk.

The person working front desk at this hour was a middle-aged woman in perhaps her mid-forties with braided red hair, light green eyes, and a clear Native American ancestry. She had a name tag that read Uma.

As I was walking up to her, she sensed me and asked, "Can I help you?"

"Perhaps," I admitted, "What do you know about the 13th floor? When I tried to use the elevator last night, it got up to the 12th floor, started to go to the 13th floor, but made a bunch of noise before settling back down to the 12th floor."

"You're not the first person to ask about that," Uma replied with a smile, "I don't know if there is a 13th floor. The blueprints I've been shown anyway show only 12. If there was supposed to be a 13th floor it never got added on because the stairs stop at the 12th floor. Anything else?"

I told her I didn't have any more questions and made my way back to the elevator. Deciding to stop by the 12th floor, to check on Veronica and her friends and to search for a false ceiling, I rode the elevator up to the 8th floor and got off.

Once there I headed towards the stairwell and climbed up to the 12th floor. Like Uma had said, there were no more stairs leading up and no indication that there were any more stairs.

I sighed heavily, slightly frustrated at not being able to find any clues as to the 13th floor yet.

"Let's see what's happening in 1249," I mused, heading towards the door the exit. After opening the exit door, I made my walk to 1249 and knocked.

"It's open!" a female voice that I didn't recognize cried from behind the door. I hesitated a moment before letting myself in.

The only person inside, or up, was a redhead with strong back legs. Her body was turned from me.

"Who are you?" I asked, "You're not Alice or Veronica cause I met them last night. Katherine or Elizabeth?"

"I'm Katherine Knight," the redhead introduced turning around, "You here for Veronica?" I saw the redhead had brown eyes and was exceptionally fit, the outline of a 6 pack under her T-shirt.

"Just stopping by," I admitted, "Who's here?"

"Just me." Katherine relayed, "The three of them are out to breakfast, but Elizabeth mentioned something about someone coming over while they were gone. I guess that's you. Does the name…Iola Morton mean anything to you?"

"My girlfriend, why?" I asked.

In response, Katherine handed me a folded piece of paper and gave it to me, telling me to read it. My eyes widened as I read the message. Elizabeth was the red-headed messenger that I was supposed to find.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Joe's P.O.V.

Now that I knew Elizabeth was the red-headed messenger I was supposed to find, I realized that Veronica was not the only person whose relationship would prove beneficial. Maybe Alice and Katherine would also provide something useful when I got to know them. I looked back at the letter I had and read it again to myself.

 _To a person who knows Iola Morton,_

 _It may come as some surprise to you, but I spoke to Iola last night. As I understand, the person reading this was close to Iola. If you should desire to talk to her outside of her memories, you will understand what she means when you dream next, then I can be of service. My situation, however, will make it pretty difficult to communicate. If you require me to be of service, however, I can work with Veronica, my deaf interpreter, and she should be able to relay what I have to translate to you. This is not a guarantee though because I'm told I'm a very rapid sign language user while I'm communicating with Iola or any other spirit._

 _Maybe we'll see each other soon._

 _Your red-headed messenger, Elizabeth Richards_

 _P.S. We cannot communicate tonight because I have work._

"A letter I got yesterday said Alice X is in this room and communicating with my dead girlfriend." I began, "Can Elizabeth communicate with spirits?"

Katherine admitted she wasn't sure, but Elizabeth Richards herself claimed she could. "You interested in having breakfast?"

"It will have to be at another time," I relayed, "I ordered room service for myself. It should be coming soon."

Katherine nodded in understanding, told me to stop by later and promised she'd let her friends know I'd stop by.

I waved goodbye and headed back downstairs. Upon entering my room, I was presently surprised to see Callie and my roommates around the table. After everyone had wished me a good morning, Phil asked where I had been.

I answered honestly, telling him I had dropped by 1249 again and confirmed that the 12th floor had no stairs leading to the 13th floor.

"That 13th floor's a real mystery." Raisa muttered, "What do the blueprints say?"

"I asked the person at the front desk but she says she only saw 12 floors on the blueprints." I explained, "So where else could the 13th floor be?"

I meant this as a rhetorical question, but Phil suggested, "What about the elevator shaft?"

I rubbed my chin, weighing the practicality of Phil's suggestion before finally admitting that might be a possibility.

To our surprise, Phil and Raisa offered to check out the elevator shaft. Frank and I agreed to let them explore the elevator shaft, setting up a visit to a sporting goods store in the near future, and having them promise us they'd be careful. I then excused myself to shower.

By the time I had finished and gotten dressed, Alice, Veronica, and Elizabeth had gathered around the table with Frank, Phil, and Raisa. Callie had wandered off somewhere, perhaps back to her room.

"Room service came by," Frank announced, "I had your food placed in the refrigerator. It looks like you've got another sticky-note on the table."

I sent Frank a nod and grabbed my breakfast from the refrigerator. After I had heated my omelet, I sat down and turned over the card.

 _'948 17 25 36 Romolo Nati welcomes you. The key is inside.'_

I turned the card over expecting another long message like before, but that was it.

"Who was this from?" I asked, "And who is Romolo Nati?"

"It was from Elizabeth." Veronica revealed, "Who she got it from, I don't know, but Frank looked it up and Romolo Nati appears to be some sort of Italian architect. We called the front desk and were transferred to his room, but we got no answer."

I thought about what they said for a second before somehow my mind flashed to a statement earlier. Elizabeth could connect with spirits. What if this Romolo Nati wasn't a person, but a spirit? I thought about it quickly before realizing that Romolo Nati was an anagram for Iola Morton. The letter was from Iola Morton.

I nodded, expecting Veronica to continue, but when she didn't add anything else, I asked if anyone had decided what the numbers meant. Phil reasoned that 948 was a room number but was unsure what the other numbers could be.

"Well, let's see if anyone is there." I decided, "But first, I need to finish breakfast."

I ate my omelet in silence and volunteered to be part of the group who checked out room 948. If this Romolo Nati was indeed Iola, would anyone open the door? It seemed unlikely, but a lead was a lead. Any lead at this point was appreciated. This was turning out to be one of our hardest mysteries yet. There were dead ends everywhere.

When I finished breakfast; Phil, Raisa, Frank, and I took the elevator up to 948. Getting there first, Frank knocked on the door. We waited for a few seconds, but nobody answered.

"Maybe he's not here," Raisa suggested.

'No. I can't accept this. There must be a clue here. We just have to get in.' I thought. Aimlessly looking around, I saw Iola's spirit clear as day fly through the door to Room 948 and out into the hall. Without thinking, I turned the doorknob.

"It's unlocked," Frank stated in surprise, "How did you know that?"

"I didn't," I admitted. I then cautiously stepped inside followed by my friends.

"I think this classifies as trespassing," Phil stated, perhaps a little worried of getting caught, "Shouldn't you know this Joe?"

I ignored Phil and looked all around for the clue that I thought had to be here. I felt a pull to my right and I took it, leading to a bedroom. By looks of the place, nobody was there. That pull led me even further to a safe in the corner.

"Now we're breaking and entering," Phil muttered.

Crouching down to the safe, I put in the combination 17 25 36 and swung it open. There, in the back of the safe were several pieces of jewelry, which I ignored, and an envelope with the name _Joe Hardy_ on it. I took the envelope, leaving the jewels and exclaimed, "We're done here."

"Uh, Joe? The jewels?" Frank asked, staring at me with surprise, "May I look at them?"

I shrugged, telling him he was free to do so, but that I was done in this room. I left, Phil, and Raisa trailing me. Frank had stayed to look at the jewels.

When we were in the hallway Raisa asked, "What do you know that I don't? How did you know the combination to the safe?"

"It was in the letter," I replied matter-of-factly.

"17 25 36. Of course," Phil mumbled, "How did you know the letter was in the safe? Why leave the jewels but take the letter?"

"It's of more value," I assured, not yet revealing to Phil that I knew Romolo Nati was an anagram of Iola Morton.

"If you say so. So, now what?" Phil asked.

In response, I just held out the envelope and told him I was going to look at it alone when I got back.

"Okay. I'll work with Frank to figure out what the deal with the jewels is and maybe get some people to stake out 948." Phil decided, "When you want to let us know what's going on, please do."

"I'll see you soon. Callie dragged me along to the pool where she intends to get some pointers from the freedivers in 1249." Raisa relayed, walking over to the elevator. The three of us followed and minutes later Phil and I were back in our room.

I excused myself to head to my room and tossed the envelope I still had on the bed when I got there. Settling into a comfortable position, I opened the envelope and read what was inside.

"Dear Joe," I began, "It was nice to see you last night. Over the next 12 nights, we will see more of each other as each piece of the dream catcher is filled. Only then will you discover the reach of the Assassins. By the well, tell Frank I wished him a happy birthday and I'll be keeping an eye on him. The jewels are legit and will be returned to their proper owners immediately following your trip to the police station to answer some questions. I hope we can talk soon."

I longed to talk to Iola, but it couldn't be today. With any luck, Elizabeth would be available for me tomorrow. Maybe then I could determine why I had been seeing her so much lately. But tonight, I had to focus on Frank's birthday.

We're ending this short. It is an appropriate place to stop and an update is needed. I don't know when the next update will be.


End file.
